151 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

Baldacci is a master of suspense, great book! Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instincts, she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsiblity vanished into thin air.

One of the most enjoyable Baldacci books I have read. Baldacci captures your interest with the prolouge and holds it throughout the book. While the resolution of the plot is perhaps a little farfetched, that is easily forgiven from wanting to discover how it ends.

Baldacci is endowed with the thriller gene! Very exciting ride through the careers of two discredited Secret Service agents. The pages will fly as they try to get to the cause of their ruin. Lots of red herrings to throw you off right up the exciting end. Mind boggling to figure out who the real villain is.

September 1996: "It took a split second, although to Secret Service Agent Sean King it seemed like the longest split second ever." King was protecting presidential candidate Clyde Ritter at a rally that was supposed to be low key. When the crowd moved closer to the guest of honor, King moved closer too and then he heard something --- a bang that sounded like a dropped book. The crowd panicked, the room exploded into chaos and Ritter was lying by King's feet, shot right through the heart.

Following this tragic incident, King retired from the Secret Service in disgrace. Over time he made a new life for himself. He became a small town attorney who built a dream house on the banks of a lake in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia far away from politics, government and guns.

Eight years later, another election is on the calendar and candidate John Bruno decides to take a side trip to pay his respects to a dead friend. His protector, Secret Service Agent Michelle Maxwell, is furious and frustrated, but she capitulates to his demands in order to keep as close to their schedule as possible. While Maxwell is counting the days until the election when her fast track career could put her in the White House guarding the president, she knows that sometimes one has to break protocol. Or do they?

Once there, Bruno angrily refuses to listen to Maxwell, who insists she will not leave his side. But his tantrum is easier to assuage if Maxwell again defers to him, so she allows him to enter the funeral parlor room alone. Then the unthinkable happens --- Bruno vanishes --- and as had happened to King, Maxwell is turned into a scapegoat and her career is over.

While King watches the news about the candidate's disappearance, he understands exactly what will happen to Maxwell --- she is going to be hung out to dry the same way he had. He then makes his way to his "day job" and finds a corpse in his office.

A few days later, Maxwell begins to research the events that led to King's downfall. She reads the material, studies the photographs and listens to the videotape. She listens so closely that she hears a sound --- a familiar noise that is eerily out of place. She knows that something is very wrong with what she has seen and heard. She feels an instinctive and overwhelming connection to King and decides to seek him out.

King listens as she tells him what she has discovered: confirmation of his legitimate distraction eight years before when a bullet killed a candidate and his bodyguard. Neither of them can ignore what they both now know --- especially since he is under investigation for the murder of the man in his office. The two ex-agents decide to work together and begin an odyssey that will take them down the dark halls of Washington politics, bring them into contact with the Federal Marshall Service, and push them forward into a vast conspiracy that was set in motion long before they came on the scene.

If you have a passion for intellectual thrillers whose architecture is erected like a puzzle that is superbly limned with suspense and the action is reminiscent of yesterday's news, SPLIT SECOND is an absolute must-read. All of David Baldacci's previous eight books have soared to the top of everyone's bestseller list and his oeuvre speaks to his talent, imagination, prose and ability to tell a story that is convincing, entertaining, fascinating and makes readers feel that they are on a magical mystery tour. SPLIT SECOND tells a very complex tale that will provoke readers to think about current issues in government and offers interesting glimpses into how the Secret Service works.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instintcts, she let a presidential conidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanishes into thin air. Sean King knows how the younger agent feels. Eight years eariler, the hard-charging Secret Service agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. And the canidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Now Michelle and Sean and about to see their destinies converge. Drawn into a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly conincidences, the two discredited agents uncover a shocking truth: that the separate acts of violence that shattered their lives were really a long time in the making and are a long way from over.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret service. She let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety she was responsible for vanished into thin air. Sean King knows how the younger agent feels. Eight years earlier, the hard-changing Secret Service agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. The candidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Michelle and Sean are about to see their destinies converge.

Action packed, but complicated and farfetched. I found myself losing track of all the various plot lines and just hoping that some kind of sense would be made out of it all by the end. Very much like an average quality action movie - a guilty pleasure that doesn't hold up to any kind of scrutiny.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instinct, the let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment. He vanished into thin air. Sean King knows how she feels. Eight years earlier a presidential candidate was killed on his watch. Now Michelle and Sean are about to have their destinies converge in a mze of lies, secrets, and deadly coincidences.

This was OK. Not one of my favorites. Sean King is a former Secret Service agent who had someone die on his watch. Michelle is a Secret Service Agent who just recently had someone kidnapped on her watch. When an employee of Seans is found dead in his office, Sean and Michelle come together to try and solve and intricate mystery of deceipt, blackmail and murder. This book kept my interest and the red herring definitely swam through out the pages. I just thought the resolution was a little lame.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instincts, she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air. Sean King knows how the younger agent feels. Eight years earlier, the hard-charging Secret Service agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. And the candidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Now Michelle and Sean are about to see their destinies converge.

Drawn into a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly coincidences, the two discredited agents uncover a shocking truth: that the seperate acts of violence that shattered their lives were really a long time in the making - and are a long way from over....

Two Secret Service agents, discredited because of Split Second Diversions, "are drawn into a maze of lies, secrets and deadly coincidences.... uncovering a shocking truth that the two separate acts of violence that shattered their lives, were really a long time in the making - and are a long way from over. Baldacci as only Baldacci can do it.

Secret Service agent Michelle Maxwell let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished! What follows is a gripping page-turner of a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly coincidences for Michelle and Sean King, another discredited agent, to unravel the shocking secret! Scarey, tense action, quick paced.

Political intrique. When a presdential candidate disappears during secret service agent Michelle Maxwell's watch, she sees her career going down in flames and the only one who can help her is ex-secret service agent Sean King, who 8 years before had his career with the service destroyed when the candidate he was protecting was gunned down in front of his eyes.
Fast-paced, exciting, you can't put this one down.

We just solved a huge, complicated mystery," says one protagonist to another in this latest novel from the bestselling author of Last Man Standing, Absolute Power, etc. And that is the problem: this story of two disgraced Secret Service agents who come together to solve two campaign-trail crimes doesn't play to Baldacci's strengths, which are suspense and action (as well as strong characterizations; here's one thriller author who writes people that readers care about). The novel is primarily a mystery, with lots of talk and untangling of clues, and a less than gripping one at that. It begins in 1996, when Secret Service agent Sean King is distracted-by what isn't revealed until near the book's end-just when the presidential candidate he's guarding is shot dead. Eight years later, agent Michelle Maxwell lets the candidate she's watching enter a funeral parlor room alone; he's kidnapped. Then a body appears in the office of King, who's now a successful lawyer in North Carolina. Maxwell sees King on TV and decides to look into the event that caused his disgrace, so similar to hers. Meanwhile, King's old flame, Joan Dillinger, an ex-agent whose security firm has been hired to find the kidnapped presidential candidate, hires King to help in the hunt. The narrative ties binding the characters don't loosen much over the novel's course, as curious cross-currents flow between the two cases, all leading to a cinematic but off-the-wall denouement that reveals a villain who is more cartoon than human. What saves this novel are a few strong but brief action sequences and, above all, the interplay among the principal characters, particularly the romantic tensions among King, Maxwell and Dillinger.This is a Large Print -Hardcover

I loved this book-- I listened to a library CD earlier this year... I saw this audio cassette for sale at a good price so I got it to share. There are 4 cassettes (approx 6 hours) and this is an abridged recording. I can't comment as to the abridgement, but I did love the characters... Sean and Michelle. I'm eager to read the following books with the same characters!! It is read by Ron McLarty--

I found the abridged version very taut and exciting. It held my attention so well that I just about was late for work one morning as I wanted to hear what happens next. I thought it was very well written and the reader is great in this version.

Michelle Maxwell has just blown her future with the Secret Service.Against her instincts,she let a presidential candidate out of her sight to comfort a grieving widow.Then,behind closed doors,the politician ehose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air.
Living a new life on a quiet lake in central Virginia,Sean King knows how the younger agent feels.He's been there before.In an out-of- the-way hotel eight years earlier,the hard-charging Secret Service man allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second.And the presidential candidate Sean was protecting was gunned down before his eyes.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instincts, she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air.

David Baldacci's Split Second. #1 best seller that is exciting. Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career in the Secret Service. She let a Presidential canidate out of her site. The book cover s a maze of lies secrets and deadly coincidences. A great read.

Michelle Maxwell, a Secret Service agent assigned to a presidential candidate, sees her rising career slip away when the candidate is kidnapped. Eight years earlier, Agent Sean King was assigned to a candidate who was killed. With their professional lives similarly shattered, the two meet and uncover unlikely coincidences between the two events. Suspense mounts when a body appears in King's law office and when they are violently attacked.

Book is from Zooba. Secret Service Agent King averts his glance for a second and the presidential candidate assigned to his detail gets assasinated.Eight years later, he is a small town sheriff and part-time lawyer who gets embroiled in a murder mystery.

Secret Service Agent Michelle Maxwell knows her career is over when presidential candidate John Bruno is kidnapped on her watch. She sees a parallel to Sean King, another agent whose protectee was gunned down in front of him when his attention was diverted. Michelle contacts King and talks to him about the path their lives have taken. Sean is now embroiled in a murder investigation where he is a suspect. As they uncover information about the murder and their respective cases, they begin to suspect that their cases are tied together.

This is the first book in Baldacci's Sean King and Michelle Maxwell series. It hooked me from the very beginning and kept me interested, though it did seem to lose some momentum in the second half. The characters are well developed and likeable. I'll definitely be reading the next book in the series. My rating: 4 Stars.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at Secret Service.Against her instincts,she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air. Sean King knows how the young agent feels, Eight years earier, the hard-charging agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. And the candidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Now Michelle and Sean are about to see their destinies converge

Michelle Maxwell wrecked her career at the Secret Service when she let a presidential candidate out of her sights for just a second, and he vanished. Sean King knows how she feels, because 8 years ago he allowed his attention to be deverted and he lost a presidentical canidate to a mad man's bullet. Now they are about to see their destinies collide. Now they discover the truth that shattered their lives.

This is the first with King and Maxwell. It is also my favorite of the ones with the two in it. I highly recommend it if you liked Absolute Power. Hour Game is the next one and it is very scary. It reminds me more of a John Sanford novel.

I have read this and Stone Cold by Baldacci and thought Split Second was a better book with characters who were more believable. The plot was also more complicated and intriguing. Spoiler - I will never understand why ex-cops/ex-secret service / investigators who have multiple threats on their lives in the course of an investigation 1) fail to keep superiors informed of key developments and 2) fail to take steps to improve home and personal security. Baldacci does make you feel the frustrations of investigators trying to sort thru suspects (truths vs. lies) and tying everything together to solve a pretty good who-done-it. I would recommend this book.

David Baldacci\'s Split Second. #1 best seller that is exciting. Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career in the Secret Service. She let a Presidential canidate out of her site. The book cover s a maze of lies secrets and deadly coincidences. A great read.

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instincts, she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment, and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air. Sean King knows how the younger agent feels. Eight years earlier, the hard-charging Secret Service agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. And the candidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Now Michelle and Sean are about to see their destinies converge.

Drawn into a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly coincidences, the two discredited agents uncover a shocking truth: that the separate acts of violence that shattered their lives were really a long time in the making-and are a long way from over...

My Review
This was a very good action-packed thriller but I do have a few complaints. First off, there were way too many characters to keep track of. Secondly, it is impossible to even try and guess who the killers were because we never received any reliable clues. Thirdly, some of the scenes were too far-fetched to be believable but they did make for an exciting read. I think David Baldacci is an excellent writer but the reader needs to be given a fair chance especially when the characters seem to know what's happening and we are not privy to what they know. I will continue with the series though and hope for the best!

Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the secret service. Against her instincts, she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air. Sean King knows how the younger agent feels. Eight years earlier, the hard-charging secret service agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. And the candidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Now Michelle and Sean are about to see their destinies converge. Drawn into a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly cincidences, the two discredited agents uncover a shocking truth: that the separate acts of violence that shattered their lives were really a long time in the making -- and are a long way from over...

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are enjoyable, funny, and very likable, even some of the bad guys. The plot was fast paced and filled with twists and turns, some you saw coming and others you didn't. Definitely cannot wait to get into the rest of the series.

Drawn into a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly coincidences, the two discredited agents uncover a shocking truth: that the separate acts of vilence that shattered their lives were really a long time in the making--and are a long way from over...

"From his blockbuster debut, Absolute Power, to his most recent runaway bestseller, Last Man Standing, David Baldacci has redefined and re-energized the thriller novel. In his new work, Baldacci delivers his most relentlessly paced high-octane ride yet; the explosive story of careers shattered, lives lost, and worlds changed forever in a single ..."